Lake Shasta at lowest level since 1992

Resorts move docks to compensate

Barring a barrage of rain, this year Lake Shasta likely will hit its second-lowest level since dam construction was completed 63 years ago.

The shrinking lake hit its lowest point in 16 years late last week - 155 feet below its high water mark.

"If we have a continued dry year, it could be 165 to 170 feet (below)," said Larry Ball, operations chief for the Bureau of Reclamation at Keswick Dam.

Lake Shasta's record low level was 230 feet below the crest in 1977, which came after two years of drought. The second-lowest level was in 1978 when it dropped to just under 165 feet below.

At its 155-below level Friday, the lake only had 29 percent of its 4.5 million acre-foot capacity, Ball said.

"That's pretty low," he said.

Because of the dry fall and flows being sent down the Sacramento River to help rice farmers until the end of the month, Ball said the lake should keep dropping and hit its lowest point in 30 years by Nov. 1.

Because of the low water level, many of the marinas around the lake have shuffled their docks and some could be on the move again, said David Grey, owner of Tsasdi Resort in Lakehead.

To avoid that scenario, Grey said Friday, he had his workers pull the resort's docks onto shore three weeks ago.

"We decided to go ahead and pull them all the way out of the lake," Grey said. ". . . That way we wouldn't have to worry about where to put them."

The low lake has helped draw visitors who are interested in seeing what has been revealed during what is usually the off-season, Grey said. Those relics include an old train tunnel that is normally submerged across from Tsasdi.

Harold Jones, owner of Sugarloaf Cottages Resort, said his docks have 25 to 30 feet of water in the cove where they float. He's optimistic he won't have to move the docks this year.

Jones doesn't think the lake will drop as much as the bureau is predicting. He said the decline has slowed and flows out of the lake should be cut in November - giving the lake a chance to level off.

"It's taken four days to drop a foot," he said Friday.

Despite the low lake level, this summer he said his business fell off only slightly.

"I had more people call me up because they lost their job than (that they) had concern about water in the lake," Jones said.